India – Page 3

India: Andhra Pradesh bans propagation of other religions at Tirumala temple

By Indo-Asian News Service, 29 April 2007

The Andhra Pradesh government Friday decided to promulgate an ordinance prohibiting propagation of other religions in certain notified places of worship belonging to any particular religion. The move is mainly aimed at banning propagation of any religion other than Hinduism at the Lord Venkateshwara temple on Tirumala Hills near Tirupati.

© 2007 IANS India Private Limited, New Delhi. Posted on Religioscope with permission. — Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) is India’s first multinational and multilingual wire service. Website: www.ians.in. Subscription enquiries: contact IANS (mention Religioscope).

Religion and politics: Ayodhya temple not high on global Hindu meeting agenda – but thinking about elections

By Sharat Pradhan and Indo-Asian News Service, 13 February 2007

The three-day global meeting organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) that began on Monday 12 February focussed more on the need for a “united Hindu society; while the campaign for the Ayodhya temple did not appear to be high on the agenda. Nearly 200,000 VHP supporters, who gathered on the still drenched sandy banks along the holy Sangam or confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers, appeared to be more concerned about the caste and other socio-economic barriers that keep the Hindu society sharply divided.

India: seven million take icy baths in salvation quest

By Sharat Pradhan - Indo-Asian News Service, 18 January 2007

It was a sea of humanity in quest of salvation as nearly seven million devotees, many from outside India, Monday participated in the ‘shahi snan’, the royal bath, of the six-yearly Hindu festival of Ardh Kumbh at Sangam, the confluence of three sacred rivers, here.

India: outsourcing rituals – faith is now a phone call away

By Lamat R. Hasan - Indo-Asian News Service, 25 October 2006

In what seems like a perfect shortcut to heaven, religious services are being outsourced in the great modern market by the faithful living outside India in a bid to attain salvation. Close on the heels of Hindus and Christians, Muslims have also started outsourcing Islamic rituals.

© 2006 IANS India Private Limited, New Delhi. Posted on Religioscope with permission. — Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) is India’s first multinational and multilingual wire service. Website: www.ians.in. Subscription enquiries: contact IANS (mention Religioscope).

India: Chinese-made Hindu gods rule Indian markets

By Nayanima Basu - Indo-Asian News Service, 24 October 2006

Chinese-made idols of Hindu gods and goddesses are flooding Indian markets, especially during festivals like Diwali, Durga Puja and Ganesh Chaturthi, raking up a lot of moolah. On top of their neat and shiny appearance, consumers find the price tag just right. The demand for them is soaring, mainly because they are considered the best choice for decoration if not for immersion in ponds and lakes. And what began as a trickle some years ago has now become a flood.

India: are Muslim youth distancing from religion?

By Lamat R. Hasan - Indo-Asian News Service, 26 September 2006

Are Muslim youth in urban India junking their religion for fear of being branded as terrorists? While many stressed out Muslims, weary of being targeted or racially profiled, are increasingly taking to spirituality and seeking solace in religion, educated youth are today consciously or unconsciously distancing from Islam to showcase their secular credentials.

India: legislation to ban propagation of other religions in Hindu pilgrim centres in Andhra Pradesh

By Indo-Asian News Service , 26 September 2006

Amid controversy over the alleged evangelical activities in the Tirumala temple, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy Tuesday said his government would bring a legislation to ban the propagation of other religions in Hindu pilgrim centres.

India: Muslims demand right to pray in ancient mosques

By M.R. Narayan Swamy - Indo-Asian News Service, 18 June 2006

Indian Muslims are demanding the right to pray in nearly 600 historical mosques across the country which are under the control of the central government for archaeological reasons. Muslim leaders say it is high time the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) permitted their community to pray five times a day in all these mosques if it does believe in religious equality.

India: American builds Jagannath temple for foreigners

By Indo-Asian News Service, 15 June 2006

As the Jagannath Temple in Puri does not let foreigners in, an American devotee has built a similar shrine elsewhere in the state where non-Indians too can pray. Julian Parker, who hails from Los Angeles and has been living in Orissa’s Bhadrak district since 1994, has built a 35-foot- high temple in Kuansh village near Bhadrak town in the coastal district.

India: astrology, mystic sciences exhibition, a crowd puller

By Indo-Asian News Service, 1 February 2006

Astrology, palmistry, tarot cards, feng shui and allied sciences attracted thousands of people at a special exhibition ‘Nakshatra 2006’ that concluded in the national capital Wednesday. Organised by India Trade Promotion Organisation in coordination with Future Point, the fair focused on astrology, palmistry, numerology, vaastu, feng shui, reiki, pranic healing, yoga, meditation, acupressure, acupuncture, magnato, herbal therapies and tarot card reading.